A record of the Memorial Cross, Reredos & Kneeling Desk at Cheltenham College ercetd in memory of Cheltonians who fell in the Boer War. Includes a roll, with brief details, of 51 who were killed in action or died of wounds or disease during the conflict. Orig. white cloth, gilt to front, with green cloth backstrip, some staining to rear cover o/w VG throughout & scarce. See illustration on our website.
£145

Report of His Majesty's Commissioners Appointed to Inquire into the Military Preparations & Other Matters connected with the War in South Africa. [Bound with:] Appendices to the Minutes of Evidence Taken before the Royal Commission on the War in South Africa [Together with:] Minutes of Evidence taken before the Royal Commission (Volume I) [Bound with:] (Volume II).`1st Eds., foolscap, viii+316, [ii]+445, xii+534 & x+720pp. HMSO.1903
#54324

Key cornerstone work on Boer War organisation & operations 1899-1900, complete in 4 Vols.: "The report of the Elgin Commission appointed to inquire into the military preparations for the war in South Africa, & into the supply of men, ammunition, equipment & transport by sea & land in connection with the campaign, & into the military operations up to the occupation of Pretoria... The volume is fully indexed." - Hackett p.8. 1000 copies printed & surprisingly scarce for that. Nice contemp. half blue calf (by W. Kidd, Dundee), raised bands to spines with contrasting leather lettering labels, little rubbed at edghes and joints, generally VG, nice set. See illustrations on our website.
£600

Lt. Lygon's exceptionally rare, interesting & detailed private diaries of the campaign in South Africa with 3rd Bn. Grenadier Guards 1899-1900: shot in the foot at Modder River in Nov. 1899 but quickly returned to duty & describes other early battles such as Magersfontein, until KiA at Karree Siding, near the Modder River, 23rd March 1900. Very nicely printed on rag paper with stiff brown card wraps., titled in red to front, ex-lib. RHQ Grenadier Guards with paper label at head of sp. & large ink stain to front wrap., this also affecting lower edge of rear wrap., doubtless resulting from the upsetting of an ink bottle, so a poor copy but internally clean.
£145

Lt. Lygon's exceptionally rare, interesting & detailed private diaries of the campaign in South Africa with 3rd Bn. Grenadier Guards 1899-1900: shot in the foot at Modder River in Nov. 1899 but quickly returned to duty & describes other early battles such as Magersfontein, until KiA at Karree Siding, near the Modder River, 23rd March 1900. Very nicely printed on rag paper with stiff brown card wraps., titled in red to front, little dusty o/w VG throughout. See illustration on our website.
£275

Excellent account of 20th Coy., Scottish Imperial Yeomanry on active service. Annotated nominal roll of officers & men. Attractive orig. pictorial cloth, little worn but VG & interesting copy with tipped-in notice of unidentified origin, but probably the unit's newsletter, in which the author writes to the Editor: "Sir, I have just learned with the greatest regret that in the chapter... dealing with the battle of Nooitgedacht, I have indavertently done a grave injustice to Cpl. Bonthrone, late of the 20th Company. It is stated in the account of the battle that Bonthrone held up his hands in a token of surrender. This I now find was not the case. The truth of the matter is that Bonthrone was binding the wounds of a comrade when he was shot at close range by the Boers... J. Percy Sturrock, 43 Nethergate, Dundee, 1st July, 1903." At the foot of this clipping is a note that "Subscribers are requested to cut out pages 97 and 98 from this volume & subsititute the correct pages sent herewith." The replacement pages have not been subsituted in this copy, are not present, but the matter requiring correction is covered in the tipped-in clipping. We have never seen a copy with this clipping and/or the corrrected pages in place & Hackett does not appear to have been aware of this correction. Rare. See illustration on our website.
£245

Richly detailed & standard contemporary account of the Italo-Ethiopian War of 1896 (Italian-Abyssinian & Italian-Dervish campaigns) & the Ethiopian victory at Adowa. The author, George Fitz-Hardinge Berkeley, an Anglo-Irishman, was a prominent cricketer in his day; served in the Worcestershire Regiment 1898-1901 (& as a musketry instructor during the First World War); was a member of the Irish Bar & a strong supporter of Irish Home Rule. Orig. red cloth, somewhat dampstained, about VG & scarce, inscribed by the author "For Uncle Harry with best wishes, and very many thanks for assistance. FRom the Author Nov. 14 1902." See illustration on our website.
£65

The authors were Wolseley's AMS & DQMG on the 1873-74 Ashanti expedition. En route it was found that officers present had little knowledge of the destination. Utilising the works available (Govt. Blue Books, Topographical Notes & half-a-dozen travellers' or missionaries' accounts) they prepared these papers in preparation for the campaign. Orig. red cloth, gilt, splitting & stained but sound & scarce. See illustration on our website.
£75